He was watching the disembarkation of some troops when a shot was fired which narrowly missed him, and killed General Bitencourt, the minister of war.
Nevertheless the whole of the infantry of the ith Division was on shore before dawn, and its leading battalions had driven off the Turkish detachments met with in the immediate vicinity of the points of disembarkation.
The different fares may relate to port of disembarkation rather than any distinction between cabin and steerage class.
Still, if the attacking side enjoyed an advantage in this respect, the possible landingplaces were few in number and were therefore well indicated, there had been ample time to protect them with earthworks and barbed wire, and in any disembarkation in face of resistance the tactical conditions favour the defence.
But, here again a disembarkation in face of opposition would have to be risked and a dispersion of resources would arise, while there were strong objections from the point of view of ship transport to conveying troops to a point so distant from the island of Imbros as Bulair; for Imbros was to be utilized as the principal concentration point for the reinforcements from England.